Machine for operating upon insoles



March 2, 1954 A. s. CLARK 2,670,480

MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES Filed July 21, 1950 18 Sheets-She at 1 March 2, 1954 Filed July 21 1950 A. S. CLARK MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES 18 Sheets-Sheet 2 lnven for Alfred 51 CM r/( 5 his Attorney 18 Sheets-Sheet 3 A. s. CLARK March 2, 1954 MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES Filed July 21, 1950 March 2, 1954 A. s. CLARK MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES 18 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed July 21 1950 [n ueman Alfred S. la 2% By h s Attrney March 1954 A. s. CLARK MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES 18 Sheeis-Sheet 5 /n uemol Alfred S. Clark By his Attorney Filed July 21 1950 March 2, 1954 s CLARK 2,670,480

MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES Filed July 21, 1950 18 Sheets-Sheet 6 AMA/6 [n men for Alfre i '6: Clark March 2, 1954 3, CLARK 2,670,480

MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES Filed July 21, 1950 l8 Sheets-Sheet 7 III-. 90- H 706 786 H 7 [nverzfop Alfred S. Clark By hi Attorney March 2, 1954 A, s, CLARK 2,670,480

MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES Filed July 21 1950 18 Sheets-Sheet 8 frzuerzzor Fug./J-

March 2, 1954 A. s. CLARK 2,670,480

MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES Filed July 21, 1950 18 Sheets-Sheet 9 fnvemor AlfredSC/ar B /7' I March 2, 1954 A. s. CLARK MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES 18 Sheets-Sheet 10 Filed July 21 1950 [n uemon AZfre-d S Clark March 2, 1954 A. s. CLARK MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES 18 Sheets-Sheet 11 Filed July 21, 1950 In venzw Alfred 5. C(ar/f Atto 18 Sheets-Sheet l2 March 2, 1954 CLARK MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON I NSOLES Filed July 21, 1950 March 2, 1954 s CLARK MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES 1a Sheets-Sheet 1:5

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MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES Filed July 21, 1950 18 Sheets-Sheet is Patented Mar. 2, 1954 UNITED s'rA'rss Zhlhitd ATENT OFFICE MACHINE FOR OPERATING UPON INSOLES Application July 21, 1950, Serial No. 175,174

131 Claims. 01. 1220) This invention relates to insoles and machines for operating upon insoles and is illustrated herein as embodied in a machine for making and attaching ribbed strips to insoles to provide sewing ribs thereon.

Objects of the invention are to provide an improved machine of the type referred to which is more efficient, accurate and faster in operation than machines used heretofore for such purposes and which is economical to build and relatively simple to operate. Other objects are to provide an improved ribbed strip making and attaching machine in which the work required by the operator is reduced to a minimum without any sacrifice in quality or speed of production, and also in which the operator can direct his attention primarily to the work being operated upon rather than to the machine without danger of injury to himself or damage to the machine or the work piece. invention is to provide an improved machine of the type indicated which will be adapted to operate successfully upen insoles which vary substantially in size and shape and also those which range in thickness from a few thousandths of an inch up to several irons, the machine being also adapted, without alteration or changing of parts, to operate upon relatively hard or firm materials as Well as upon materials which are yieldable or relatively soft or resilient in nature.

To the attainment of the foregoing objects the invention provides, in accordance with one of its features, an improved machine of the type referred to in which single or unitary means is provided for coated ribbed strip intermittently against an insole to attach the strip thereto and for also feeding the combined ribbed strip and insole simultaneously with the pressing operation. As herein illustrated, the single means comprises a presser and feed foot which is made up of two elements and which is actuated by continuouslyoperating means controlled by a single treadle. This single pressing and feeding means is arranged, however, to press the precemented ribbed strip against the insole with substantially uniform pressure throughout the strip attaching operation but to feed the insole and strip at a speed which is variable at the will of the operator. That is to say, the single or unitary presser foot of the present machine wiil be substantially uniform as long as pressure is being applied to the insole and strip, this pressure varying only as the thicknesses of the portions of the insole and strip engaged by A still further object of the pressing a preformed cementpressure applied by the the presser foot vary. The presser foot is adapted to accommodate such variations in thickness by causing the elements which make up the unitary presser foot to yield separately and independently of each other, although being actuated from the power-operated mechanism of the machine in such a manner that they have the same operative movement or stroke when applying pressure to the work.

Although the elements of the single presser foot apply substantially uniform pressure to the work, the pressure varying only as indicated above, the presser foot, as stated, is arranged to feed the insole and ribbed strip at a speed which is variable at the will of the operator. This is accomplished, in the present mc-hine, by causing the unitary presser foot to receive its feeding motion from the movement of constantly operating means any portion of which movement can be transmitted to the presser foot by the operator without affecting the transmission of the full pressing motion from said constantly-operating means to the presser foot. Consequently, the feeding movement of the presser foot may be varied at the will of the operator from minimum to maximum, or vice versa, without aifecting the uniform pressing movement of the presser foot. Moreover, the feeding movement can be reduced to nothing while permitting the pressing action of the presser foot to continue with its normal uniform pressure.

In accordance with another of its features, the invention provides improved means in a machine of this type for insuring the application of a sufficient amount or lengthof cement-coated ribbed strip to the insoles, particularly to insoles of extremely thin, flexible material, to eliminate any tendency of the insoles to curl or strap after the ribbed strip has been attached or bonded thereto. As herein illustrated, the means for insuring that sufficient ribbed strip will always be attached to the insole consists of a freely rotatable support for holding the insole being operated upon and means for controlling the rotation of the support during the strip attaching operation, this means comprising a friction device for retarding the rotation of th support as much as desired. The retarding of the rotation of the support causes a drag or lag to occur between the insole on the support and the operating presser foot, this drag causing an extremely small amount of extra or excess ribbed strip or tape to be applied to the insole at each intermittent pressing movement of the presser foot. The cumulative elfect of this is to insure that suflicient strip will be applied to each insole to prevent curling or strapping regardless of the type of insole being operated upon. In addition to the above, the machine is also provided with a so-called overfeed device which causes an even greater amount of excess strip or tape to be applied to the insole, this overfeed means being used only when needed, for example, on extremely thin insoles or thick insoles composed of resilient or yieldalole materials, such as rubber or plastic.

In order to insure accuracy as well as speed in the attachment of the ribbed strip to the insole, the machine is also provided with a heel gage and a side or edge gage to initially position the insole on the support relatively to the single presser foot. In accordance with a further feature of the invention, the heel gage is arranged to be moved into and out of operative position without, attention on the part of the operator and to be held in an inoperative position during the strip at taching operation so that it will not interfere with such operation, the gage being returned automatically into 0 erative position, however, before the next insole is to be operated upon.

It, is desirable in machines of this type to be able to cause the ribbed strip to terminate on the insole at a predetermined point or line at the op posite margins of the insole, usualy in the vicinity of the heel breast line, the strip terminating at both margins on substantially the same line transversely or Widthwise of the insole so that, the ends of the strip will be in substantial alinement with each other. Means is, provided in the present machine for accomplishing this result automatically, this means, as illustrated, being controlled by the ribbed strip itself. Although the transverse line upon which the ribbed strip is terminated at the opposite margins of the, insoles is illustrated herein as approximately the heel breast line, it could, if desired, be caused to terminate at any other desired point or line on the insole. As herein illustrated, the means for controlling the length of ribbed strip applied to the insole, and thereby causing the opposite ends of the strip to terminate on the same line transversely of the insole, operates automatically by engagement with the strip already applied to the first or starting margin of the insole to stop the operation of the strip attaching mechanism when the ribbed strip being applied to the second or finishing margin of the insole reaches a point which is in transverse alinement with starting end of the strip applied to the first margin. of the insole.

The machine is also provided, in accordance with another feature of the invention, with means for severing the ribbed strip substantially on the line where it was last pressed against the insole,

that is, where its attachment to the insole terminates, this point, as stated, being in substantial alinement with the leading end of the strip applied to the first or starting margin of the insole which, as disclosed herein, is substantially at the heel breast line of the insole. The means for severing the ribbed strip, as illustrated herein, may be manually operated or operated automatically and, in either case, the knife will cut oif the strip at precisely the desired position lengthwise of the insole.

In order to insure a clean sharp cutting operation, the ribbed strip is put under tension in the present machine by moving the insole rearwardly on the support, this action being performed by the operator and serving also to position the insole and strip properly for the cutting-off knife and to render the knife itself operable by removing from its path means which normally prevent the knife from operating when the presser foot is operating. When the knife is operating in the present machine, the presser foot cannot operate, thereby insuring that the machine will not be damaged or the work spoiled through accidental, operation of both mechanisms at the same time.

Other features of the invention include a rotary work support which is normally stationary heightwise rather than movable or yieldable, means in the machine for making or forming the ribbed strip itself, before it is attached to the insole, and means for insuring that a sufficient length of preformed ribbed strip will always be available for attachment to an insole, this latter means being controlled automatically by excess of the ribbed strip after it has been formed, the excessive strip acting to stop and start the strip forming mechanism of the machine automatically irrespective of whether or not the strip attaching mechanism is operating. Means is also provided, in connection with the ribbed strip forming means, for preventing the supply of precoated tape from which the ribbed strip is made from being used up and thereby making it necessary for the operator to thread a new strip through the strip forming mechanism. As herein illustrated, the means for insuring that the supply of tape will not be used up operates automatically by engagement with the tape to stop the operation of the ribbed strip forming mechanism when the supply is too low, thereby notifying the operator so that he can stop attaching the strip to insoles and introduce a new supply of tape into the machine.

With the above and other objects and features in View, including improved strip forming means for making a single tape ribbed strip instead of, a double tape strip, improved normally stationary mechanism for guiding the ribbed strip to the insoie on the support, improved means for, automatically measuring the ribbed strip applied to the insole and other novel combinations and arrangements of parts, the invention will now be described in detail in connection with the accompanying drawings and will thereafter be pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings,

Fig. l is a front elevation of the head oi the machine which embodies the present invention;

Fig. 2, is a side elevation of the machine as. viewed from the left in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a detail view of the upper end of an arm shown broken in Fig. 2

Fig. 4. is a left side elevation of the base p0 tion of the machine;

Fig. 5 is a vertical section, looking from the, right in Fig. 1, showing the work support and the ribbed strip attaching and feeding means;

Fig. 6 is a side elevation partly in section, as viewed from, the right in Fig. 1, illustrating manually-controlled mechanism for actuating the attaching and feeding means;

Fig. '7 is a view similar to Fig. 6 showing the manually-controlled mechanism in a different position;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail view, partly in se,c-. tion, of eccentrics which actuate the attaching and feeding means;

Fig. 9 is a diagrammatic view, on an enlarged scale, of the path through which the attaching and feeding means travels during one cycle of p rati n;

Fig. 10 is a vertical section, similar to Fig. 5, 

